The present invention relates to a carton sealing machine having conveyor belts with a safety stop therefor at the end of the operation.
Carton sealing machines are known which provide a pair of conveying belts on a support base; the conveyor belts are capable of engaging the carton sides in order to control the advancement of the same cartons along the said base and through a conveniently equipped sealing area for sealing of the cartons.
In such machines the operation of the conveying belts is usually assigned to or under the control of an electric motor, which keeps them in movement by means of a suitable motion transmission mechanism during the whole period of use or operation of the machine.
The object of the present invention is to provide a sealing machine of the above mentioned kind, which, in part for accident prevention and in part for reduction of wear and saving of energy, provides for a stoppage of the conveying belts at the end of every carton sealing operation.
According to the invention such an object is accomplished by providing a sealing machine provided with the motion transmission mechanism which includes a releasable friction device or clutch and at the outlet of the carton sealing area there is disposed a sensor for sensing the disengagement or leaving of a carton from the carton sealing area and at that point in time to control the release of the releasable friction device for the subsequent stopping of the conveyor belts.
The machine according to the invention therefore provides that at the end of every sealing operation a sensor causes and controls a releasable friction device or clutch to render the same operable to stop the conveying belts and stop the carton movement. One is thus assured that between a first sealing operation and the next successive sealing operation, accidents due to the belt movement do not occur and at the same time energy is saved and the wear of the different members in movement is limited.